Advice on a growspace

[RamblerGambler]

Greetings all. Thanks to our current robust economy, I've found my funds to be gradually diminishing to the point where growing has become a viable alternative. I've been lurking on the forums for awhile now, and have become close friends with the Search button, but I'm at the point where I'd like a bit of community advice (if anyone would be so kind). Please excuse the presumptuous nature of the statements. I've always believed there's nothing worse then someone talking about what they are going to do, and yet here I am.

Here is what I'm looking at - the free space in the closet under the desk. The dimensions are 36"x 22 1/4" x 27 1/2"

Clearly due to space constraints it would be limited to a couple of plants either LST'd or put into a SCROG. This being a first attempt, I'd like to stick to the basics and build a bit of working knowledge and equipment before setting my sights on hydro, etc. But again, I get ahead of myself.

What I would appreciate would be thoughts of how to set up a cab. Keep in mind money is a bit of an issue, and ghetto rigged setups seem to have treated many in this community just fine. I'm leaning towards building a wooden box for the space, with the interior cheaply painted flat white. Thoughts on cab materials? I figure I'll need at least one fan up top with a couple passive intakes on the bottom.

Lighting would start with CFL's and go from there. (I've got plenty of links on the topics thanks to the efforts of guys like Zebulon) Would there be enough space to create both a vegging and flowering box?

Any help would be appreciated.

[GoldenGraham84]

ScrOG wouldn't be feasible under there, sorry. no room for transplanting and even if you started in your final pot size, that space would really restrict your ability to prune and train the plant.
LST would work. i'd get some plywood and something to make your corners with (little bits of a 2x4 maybe) then some wood screws. paint before assembly, and when you're getting the paint and plywood from home depot or wherever, grab a 4" inline duct fan, a drill if you don't have one, a 4" hole bit, and maybe the planters depending on what they offer. looks like you could get 8 CFLs in there, so maybe also a 4 socket vanity light and 4 Y-splitters. this is a pic of my CFL setup to give the basic idea of what i mean.

[RamblerGambler]

I see. Well I'll try to make a stop to the local Home De Pot tomorrow and see what I can rustle up. Thanks for the pic, it gives me a decent idea of what I'll need.

[RamblerGambler]

Well, it seems like its time for an update. Construction of the cab has begun, though its moving at a snails pace thanks to other commitments... i.e. school. There have been a few modifications to the original plans, so I'd like a few opinions...

Setup as follows:
â?¢1/2" Ply Cab with total dimensions (46.25" x 22.5" x 33") painted flat white
Two thirds of this space will eventually go towards flowering. However, this being a first attempt, it will do whatever I need it to do.

Lighting
â?¢ (4) 42w Cfl's
â?¢ (2) 26w (6500k) Cfl's

While lighting is subject to change, I'm using bobbongs multiple grows as my template http://boards.cannabis.com/indoor-lighting/61768-compact-fluorescent-light-discussion.html

Exhaust
Passive intake coupled with an inline duct fan similar to this: Inductor 4 In. In-line Duct Fan - DB204 at The Home Depot (http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?id=100073963&jspStoreDir=hdus&catalogId=10053&marketID=401&productId=100073963&locStoreNum=8125&langId=-1&linktype=product&storeId=10051&ddkey=THDSiteMap)

My questions with the inline duct fan:
-I can only find it online. Is there a store that I could find it locally? Neither HD or Lowes seem to stock it.
-how hard would it be to wire it?


Input would be appreciated.

[Lit Up]

Your probably going to want a little fan to put inside to give your plants some breeze. Intake hole - you could put it in the floor of your box then raise your box with some 2x4's, sucking cool air in from the floor.

Hope that helps buddy.

I edited your pic, sorry. Maybe shoot for something like this...

[GoldenGraham84]

i'm sure home depot has one. look near the ventilation section (duct work). just ask until they find it for you. they sell it online, so they must stock it. they may refer to it as a booster fan. i got mine at menards but a friend got one from home depot. plans are coming along nice man.

[RamblerGambler]

Lit Up- Thanks, I knew I was forgetting something. Another purchase added to an ever expanding list. As for the intake(s), I was thinking about (2) 90 degree pvc fittings on the lower front of the cab. how large should they be?

GoldenGraham84- I'll head back up there tomorrow and see if I can't harass them them into finding it. Its amazing how vague they can be at times...

[Lit Up]

I'd go about 6 inches or so.

[RamblerGambler]

Light placement question: I was planning on hanging my 42w cfl's inverted on the top of the cab ala bobbong (See attached image) but I've increasingly been reading that you can get more light off the sides off the bulb. Should I alter my set-up or would vertical placement be fine?

[GoldenGraham84]

thats so wierd... i keep hearing my setup isn't optimal because they're not vertical. i've had great success with my (12) 26W at like 45 degree angles, and seen plenty of successes on here with vertical placement. i'd go with what fits your needs/space.

[Lit Up]

Either or would probably be sufficient. Y splitters are God's gift to man, I suggest using them to double you lighting without taking up a lot of extra room.

[RamblerGambler]

Back from a busy night shopping around the hardware stores and I've got about 90% of my materials. I'll put the primer on tonight and assemble the cab sometime this weekend.

Unfortunately on the inline duct booster fan front, I was left hanging by both Lowes and HD. Apparently they do not carry them in the store and they are unable to order from the catalog. Talk about pure logic, you list an item online but are somehow unable to acquire it at a physical location. So now I must either buy it offline or try some other hardware stores.

Lit Up- I'm going to pick up 2 Y splitters for side lighting tomorrow. I figure that I can put two 6500k bulbs in for vegging then switch over to 2700k during flower. Should be workable, right?

[Lit Up]

Very workable.

[RamblerGambler]

Construction begins at last! At this point the 4th coat of flat white paint is drying, so we'll see what it looks like in the morning. Sorry for the quality of the pictures, I'm using my phone until I can dig my camera out.

[GoldenGraham84]

looking good bro. keep on keeping on. :thumbsup:

[RamblerGambler]

And away we go! The first step of assembly has brought about its share of problems. Do do a slight oversight during construction, I've somehow managed to screw up the dimensions. This has created a conundrum. I can either reassemble and retry, or simply go with the current setup. Currently the cab 33.5" deep x 22 3/4 wide x 46 3/4 tall.

I'm thinking I might just pull the desk out completely and push the cab all the way to the left (see pic in 1st post). I'd still need to partition it for separate veg and flower chambers though. Should I take this course of action?

[RamblerGambler]

After spending way too much time repairing my early attempts at carpentry, it looks like I'm finally back on track. I'll start wiring it up sometime during the next couple of days, putting 4 fixtures on top plus finalizing plans for side lighting. I don't have much electrical experience, but wiring 4 fixtures in parallel doesn't seem like it should be that hard. (Advice welcome)

Hopefully construction will be finished by next week, and I can finally get the show on the road.


Pic 1 - Cab on it's side
Pic 2 & 3 - More unfinished cab

[RamblerGambler]

Thoughts on lighting - I'm thinking of taking the easy way out and going with a setup similar to the one pictured, only with another 4 light fixture on the opposite side. CFL wise, I originally thought about going (4) 40w and (8) 23w
w/ Ysplitters, but I'm starting to run low on cash. Could I get by using more 23w to compensate?

(2) 4-light wall bracket Progress Lighting Broadway Collection White 4-Light Wall Bracket - P3298-30 at The Home Depot (http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10051&langId=-1&catalogId=10053&productId=100468392&N=10000003+90401&D=4-light+wall+bracket) (Like this but cheaper)


Side lighting is still a concern, but i'm thinking maybe just throw in a $5 3-light fixture from WallyWorld. Thoughts? Opinions?